Blood, 1959, Vol. 14, No. 11, pp. 1173-1179.
© 1959 American Society of Hematology, Inc.
The Collection and Storage of Viable Human Fetal
Hematopoietic Tissue for Intravenous Use
JOSEPH W. FERREBEE 1,
HARRY L. LOCHTE JR. 1,
HERBERT SWANBERG 1, and
E. DONNALL THOMAS 1
1 Mary Imogene Bassett Hospital (affiliated with Columbia University),
Cooperstown, N. Y., and the Children's Cancer Research Foundation, Children's Medical
Center, Boston, Mass.
Livers and spleens from human fetuses in the 12 to 20 weeks’ gestation
period were preserved in a sterile condition in glycerol and serum at -70 C.
for periods of several weeks. Studies of DNA synthesis rates with C14-formate,
and radioautographs after incubation with tritiated thymidine, revealed that
hematopoietic elements concentrated in these tissues at this stage of gestation maintained their viability during these periods of storage. Intravenous
infusion of cellular suspensions prepared from stored frozen tissue, or from
fresh tissue in this same age group, produced no observed untoward clinical
event in the three patients studied.
Some of the arguments favoring the use of fetal hematopoietic tissue,
in contrast to adult marrow, in the attempt to restore marrow function
after radiation injury are briefly reviewed.
Submitted on December 22, 1958
Accepted on March 31, 1959
